Car dumper retarding mechanism



E. W. TAYLOR CAR DUMPER RETARDING MECHANISM Filed Aug. 17, 1 934 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR,

E. w. TAYLOR 2,038,811

Filed Aug. 17, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 CARfDUMPER RETARDING MECHANISM WNM \mN April 28, 1936. w TAYL(I)R 2,038,81l

CAR DUMPER RETARDING MECHANISM Filed Aug.- 17, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

AP 1935- v E. w. TAYLOR 2,038,811

CAR DUMPER RETARDING MECHANISM Filed Aug. 17, 1954 4 Sheets-Shee .4

INVENTOR.

[awea/ M; v %z1% Marv.

ATTORNEY.

' a vessel, bin, or hopper; When carloads of Patented Apr. 28, 1936 PATENT OFFICE CAR DUMPER RETARDING MECHANISM Ernest W. Taylor, Bay City, Mich., assignor to Industrial Brownhoist Corporation, Bay City, Mich, a corporation of Ohio Application August 17,

. 16 Claims.

This invention relates to material handling apparatus such as car dumpers and the like, wherein provision is made for emptying the contents of a car or other receptacle into a bin, vessel, or hopper, and more'particularly to a car dumper including a pan into which the car contents are adapted to be emptied and which leads to a collapsible down spout or chute- In the conventional car dumper the loaded car is run onto a cradle which is arranged in a tower, and is adapted to be raised to a suitable height, and then tilted to discharge the contents into a pan or apron from which it flows, by gravity, through a suitable telescopic chute into coal or other friable material are handled in this manner, the portion of the coal which first falls from the car into the pan drops an objectionable distance, and in its rapid descent is much broken and damaged. This very materially reduces the value of the load, and it is the prime object of the invention to provide means for eliminating this objectionable drop and the consequent break age, so that the load may slide in an even, steady stream, without danger of breakage or crushing.

Another object of the invention is to provide simple, substantial, and practical means for retarding and regulating the flow of material in the pan, eliminating the drop above referred to, and therebyminimizing the breakage which occurs where no regulating means is employed.

A further object is to provide pivotally mounted swing gate girders having rams mounted thereon, said rams being longitudinally movable in the pan with relation to said girders, so that the material discharging from the car is gently lowered as it accumulates thereon.

A still further object is to provide simple and practical means for controlling the sWinging of the retarding mechanism and the return thereof to original position.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the form, size, proportion, and minor details for construction, without departing from the spirit, or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings- Fig. l is a side elevation of a car dumper embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the pan, the dotted 1934, Serial No. 740,258

lines showing the mechanism in various positions, the arrows indicating the swing.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary View showing one of the swing gate girders, the pan cover girder, and the actuating mechanism for driv- 5 ing the ram and girder.

, Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary detail showing the material deposited on the ram in the pan, parts being broken away to show the interior.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary transverse sectional side view of the pan, swing gate girders, and ram, the broken lines showing the ram in extended position.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail plan view of the ram actuating gearing.

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 5 with the ram omitted.

In high lift car dumpers of the design shown in the accompanying drawings and in which the pan is mounted to permit it to be swung up to provide clearance for ships and to conform to certain standards, it is necessary to provide rams which are mounted on the swing gate girders and which are movable with relation thereto.

But on other designs, the rams are omitted and the material discharges directly against the swing gate girders which are then formed as shown in Fig. 7 of the drawings.

In the present instance, and with particular 30,

reference to Figs. 1 to 6 of the drawings, I have shown and described a high lift dumper with a pivotally mounted pan and rams mounted on the swing gate girders.

It is at present general practice among experienced oar dumper operators to keep the telescopic chute and neck of the pan full of coal, thereby shortening the distance the coal must fall to minimize or eliminate breakage and the resultant fines and slack; consequently, the long- 40 est drop is between the car at the upper end of the pan, and the coal held in the neck or discharge end of the pan. This causes considerable breakage, and I have, therefore, provided the retarding mechanism which is mounted in and spans the upper end of the pan for arresting the progress or flow of the coal as it is dumped from the car, said mechanism moving downwardly a predetermined distance as the coal accumulates thereon, and then swinging downwardly and out- Wardly against the side walls of the pan, permitting the accumulated coal to flow downwardly under control, and against the accumulated coal in the lower discharge end of the pan, the mechanism at the lower end. of the discharge chuteis then actuated to discharge the material until but a small portion is left in the lower end of the pan. This insures the coal moving in a solid stream, with a minimum of breakage, and in no manner affects the capacity of the car dumper.

Referring now to the drawings, the numeral 6 indicates the conventional tower which supports a vertically movable, tiltable cradle I which is adapted to receive a railway car 8 as usual.

Laterally disposed pivot pins 9 are provided on the ends of the cradle, and brackets 10 are secured on a horizontally extending, adjustable pan girder frame H and are formed'with sockets l2 in which the pins 9 engage when the cradle has been raised to tilting position. 7

Suitable shifting mechanism is provided for shifting the ear against the side wallof the cradle and to secure it rigidly in proper position,'and clamps l3 are provided over the top of the car, and include beams I4 to which a curtain I5 is secured for retaining the coal in the car until said car has been tilted to discharging position,

said curtain being divided into gates or sections j as desired'so that the material can be readily controlled. This curtain mechanism, however, forms, the subject matter of a separate application, the'present invention being directed to the retarding means for controlling the flow of coal in the pan. 7 a

A discharge pan I6 is pivotally connected to the adjustable girder frame H at the point l1, and a narrow plate extension l8 covers the end of the pan and butts against a plate section l9 which extends onto the pin brackets [5- to prevent spillage of the coal when dumping; and in certain installations the plate section I8 is omitted, V

the end of-the pan engaging the edge of the plate I9. I a V The details of the construction of the tower,

the means for raising and tilting the cradle and car, etc., have been referred to only briefly herein, as they are of conventional design-and such details form no part of the present invention which is directed to means for retarding and controlling the coal flow in the pan. 7

The retarding mechanism is mounted in and spans the upper end of the pan and includes op-' posed swing gate girder members 20- and 2| respectively, a housing 22 being provided on the outer end of each girder, and a vertically disposed shaft 23 is journaled in said housing so that the girders swing on said shafts, a roller 24 being provided on the inner end of each girder and rides on the floor of the pan, suitable gearing being provided in this housing, and for a purpose to be presently described.

A ram B is mounted on these swing gate girders '29 and 2i and comprises'a pair of transversely disposed ram sections 25 and 26 respectively, the inner ends of which are shaped to permit them to lie in overlapping relation. These sections are of suitable depth to permit them to function properly in the pan, eachsection being equipped with rollers 21 which ride on the floor of the pan, and spaced apart rack members 28 are secured to each section, the free ends projecting through guide plates 29 which are provided on g each swing gategirder.

A cover member 39 is provided on the pan as usual, and a transversely disposed pancovergirder 3! is provided as shown, a ram control motor 32 being mounted on said girder, and a pinion 33 is provided on said motor, said pinion meshing with and driving a gear- 34 which is mounted on thehorizontally disposed shaft 35.

Bearings 38 are provided'on the ram guide plates 29, and a horizontally disposed shaft 39 is journaled thereon, a miter gear 40 being provided on the outer end of each shaft, meshing with a similar gear 4| which is mounted on the vertically disposed driven shaft 23. Spaced apart gears 42 are also mounted on the shaft 39, said gears meshing with the intermediate gears 43 V which are mounted on the intermediate shaft 44. A pinion shaft 45 is also mounted on the guide plates directlyadjacent the intermediate shaft 43, bearing 46 being provided as usual, said shaft being driven by the gear 41 which engages the intermediate gear 43. This shaft alsocarries the rackpinions 48 which engage the toothed face ofthe rack so that as the gears are driven, the ram will be moved accordingly.

Swing gate motors C and D respectively are mounted on the pan cover 30, and these motors control the swinging of the ram and swing gate sections, and are adapted to drive the drums 49 and 5.0 through instrumentality of the conventional trains of gears 5| and 52 as usual, each motor being provided with a solenoid brake 53 in the usual manner.

sheave brackets 54 and55' respectively are mounted on the pan cover, and sheaves 56 and 57 are journaled therein, a rope or cable 58 being anchored tov each swing gate. girder at the point 59, thence leading down and around a sheave 69 which is mounted on the bracket 6|, thence around the guide sheave 62, and thence being wound around the drum 49, thence over the sheave 54, this end being also anchored to the swing gate girder at the point 59, and it willbe.

obvious that as the motors C and D are driven, that each swing gate and ram girder can be swung downwardly asxa unit, and as each pair is separately controlled, it will be obvious that these ram girderv sections and swing gate girders can, be actuated in proper sequence, with the girder 20 overlapping, the girder 2|.

Inasmuch as each ram and swing gate section is controlled in the same manner, I shall describe the swinging and operation of but one side only, it being understood that both sides are operated in the same manner. 7 V

In practice the loaded car is run onto the cradle 1 which is raised and lowered in the conventional manner, the curtain I5 forming a closure for the top of the car, and when the cradle is tilted to position to discharge the load, this curtain or sections thereof are actuated to permit the material to be discharged against the face of the retarding ram Bwhich gradually moves downward- 1y as the load accumulates and as clearly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.

When the ram has moved downwardly to po-- sition as indicated by broken lines at E in Fig. 2

'of the drawings, the swing gate motors C and D are actuated to drive the drums 49 and 59 and material, the swing gate motors are reversed (in proper sequence) to rotate the drums 49 and B in the opposite direction to swing the swing gate and ram girders back tooriginal position. The

ram control motor 32 is then actuated to drive the shafts 35, this in turn actuates the shafts 23 so that the pinions 47 which mesh with the racks 28 force the ram to its solid line extended position (see Fig. 2), and the cycle is again repeated, this return of the mechanism and extension of the ram, etc., being accomplished while the next car is being raised to dumping position.

In Fig. '7 of the drawings, I have shown the construction of the swing gate girder such as used with a stationary pan, the rams and ram actuating mechan sm being omitted so that the material discharges direct from the car against fabricated portion 63 of the swing gate girders, the face of the girder being formed in the same manner as are the rams 25 and 26 shown in Figs. 2, 4 and 5 of the drawings and is secured to the guide plates 29. Plates 64 and 65 respectively cover the front and top of each girder and the ends-lie in overlapping relation in exactly the same manner as do the rams shown in Fig. 2. In fact the construction is the same as if the rams were held in retracted position and rigidly secured against the swing gate girders.

From the foregoing description it will be obvious that I have perfected a simple, practical, and efficient mechanism for retarding and controlling the flow of the discharging material so that it gently slides against the material retained in the neck of the pan, eliminating the objectionable drop which forms the fines and slack created by use of the conventional dumper pan construction.

What I claim is: V

1. In a car dumper, the combination with a material receiving pan, of a pivotally mounted retarding mechanism mounted to move in the pan as a unit and spanning the upper end thereof and against which the material is' discharged, and means for swinging said retarding mechanism downwardly for releasing and controlling the flow of material in the pan.

2. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a material receiving pan connected thereto, of a retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in and spanning the upper end of the pan and against which the material is discharged, means permitting limited travel of said mechanism in the pan, means for swinging said retarding mechanism downwardly to release the material, and means for returning. said mechanism to original position.

3. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a material receiving pan connected thereto, sectional retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in the pan with the inner ends lying in overlapping relation, and reversible means for swinging said sections downwardly in the pan and for returning said sections to original position.

4. The combination with a material receiving pan, of a retarding mechanism pivotally mounted therein, and including a ram, means for moving said ram longitudinally in the pan with relation to said mechanism, and means for swinging said mechanism downwardly in the pan to discharge the material retarded thereby.

5. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame, of a discharge pan pivotally connected thereto, a retarding mechanism mounted in and spanning the upper end of the pan and movable longitudinally therein, and means for swinging said mechanism downwardly against the side walls of the pan to provide an unobstructed passage from the upper to the lower end of the pan.

6. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan connected thereto, retarding mechanism pivotally mounted therein and including a sectional ram against which a load is adapted to be dumped, means for moving said rarn in the pan with relation to said mechanism, and means for controlling the swinging of the free ends of said ram sections about the pivotal mountings and against the side walls of the pan.

7. In a car dumper, the combination with a main tower having a discharge pan pivotally connected thereto, a retarding mechanism pivotally mounted therein and including a sectional ram movable longitudinally in said pan with relation to said mechanism, means for swinging said retarding mechanism about the pivotal connections and against the side walls of the pan, and means for controlling the longitudinal movement of the sectional ram.

8. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan pivotally connected thereto, a retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in said pan and including a transversely disposed sectional ram spanning the upper end of the pan and movable longitudinally therein with relation to said mechanism, means for swinging said mechanism about the pivoting points and against the side walls of the pan, said means also swinging it back to original position.

9. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan pivotally connected thereto, a transversely disposed retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in the pan and spanning the upper end thereof, said mechanism including a sectional wheeled ram movable longitudinally in the pan with relation to said mechanism, means for swinging said mechanism downwardly against the side wall of the pan, and means for controlling the longitudinal travel of said ram members.

10. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan pivotally connected thereto, a sectional retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in the upper end of the pan and including a two-piece ram, means for moving said ram with relation to said mechanism, and electric motors operatively connected to said mechanism for swinging said mechanism downwardly against the side walls of the pan and back to original position.

11. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan pivotally connected thereto, a sectional retarder mechanism mounted in the pan directly adjacent the upper end thereof and including a two-piece ram, means for imparting longitudinal movement to the ram with relation to said mechanism, and means for swinging the sections downwardly against the side walls of the pan and in predetermined sequence to discharge the load retarded thereby.

12. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan connected thereto, a retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in the pan adjacent the upper end thereof and including a sectional ram movable with relation to said mechanism, motors operatively connected to said mechanism for swinging it downwardly against the side walls of the pan and back 'thereto f-or controlling said longitudinal move- 10o ment, flexible means connected to the inner ends of the retarder mechanisimdrums mounted on the pan and over which saidflexible means is wound, and motors operatively connected to said drums whereby rotation in either direction swings the mechanism downwardly against the side walls of the pan and back to original position.

14. in a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge pan pivetally connected thereto; sectional retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in the pan and including a two-piece ram with the inner ends lying in overlapping relation, means for moving said ram longitudinally in the pan with relation to said mechani n, and means for swinging said v sectional retarding mechanism about the pivotal connections for providing an unobstructed passage from the'upper end tothe lower end of the pan. A

15. In a car dumper, the combination with a main frame having a discharge 'pan pivotally connected thereto, a retarding mechanism including swing gate girders pivotally mounted in and adjacent the upper end of the pan, a twopiece ram mounted on said girders and movable with relation thereto, electric motors operatively connected to said girders for'swinging the inner ends downwardly in the pan, and a motor operativeiy connected to saidram sections for controlling the travel thereof. a

16. In a car dumper, the combination with'a' main frame having a discharge pan pivotaliy,

connected thereto, a retarding mechanism pivotally mounted in the upper end of the pan and including a two-piece wheeled ram movable 1ongitudinally in the pan with relation to said mechanism, reversible motors operatively connected to electric motor operatively connected to the ram for controlling the longitudinal travel thereof.

ERNEST W. TAYLOR 

